The SETI Institute, the Berkeley SETI Research Center, and the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research have announced a study to search for traces of alien technology in a number of distant galaxies using the Murchison Wide Area Array (MWA), a powerful radio telescope in Western Australia.
The study is the first to look for signs of alien technology in galaxies beyond our own, focusing on low radio frequencies (100 MHz), Phys.org reports.
MWA’s large field of view allowed scientists to cover about 2,800 galaxies in one observation, of which we know the distance to 1,300.
Typically, the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) focuses on signals within our galaxy. This new approach goes further, looking at distant galaxies, the paper notes.
Thus, the new project will become one of the most detailed searches for supercivilizations – civilizations more advanced than ours.
To send a signal from another galaxy, a civilization would need technology powerful enough to harness the energy of its sun or several stars in its galaxy, the article says.
It is noted that while this first study did not reveal any technosignatures (signs of alien technology), it does provide insights that will help focus future searches. It also shows how important it is to continue to explore different radio frequencies and take advantage of the unique capabilities of telescopes like the MWA.
MWA continues to open up new ways to search the Universe for intelligent civilizations and technosignatures, while using the same data to study the astrophysics of stars and galaxies, the researchers note. “This work is groundbreaking, but also paves the way for future observations with even more powerful telescopes.”
Source: Phys.org
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